Neither the electricity companies involved nor the public authorities that govern us have explained the causes of the historic general blackout that affected the entire Iberian Peninsula this Monday, something unprecedented that has left tens of millions of citizens without electricity or digital connection for many hours, too many hours. It was a massive and far too long blackout. More than half of the Catalan population slept this Monday without electricity at home. At the time of going to press, no reasonable information had yet been provided about what happened, beyond the confirmation of an inexplicable and sudden drop in Spanish electricity production, as the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, noted late last night. The appearances of political leaders have been slow and inconclusive. It is right and necessary to call for calm and guarantee normality and security, but it is disconcerting and worrying that Prime Ministers Salvador Illa and Pedro Sánchez have not been able to provide details about what went wrong.
In the 21st century, such a blatant failure is incredible, more fitting of a dystopian novel than a technologically advanced society. And the lack of reliable and concrete data on what happened generates great concern. Many questions remain: How is it possible that such a massive power outage occurred? Are there no electrical firewalls to prevent chain reactions from power outages? Is no one able to determine where the problem occurred, or are we being kept in the dark about its nature? In both cases, this would be a serious event. Without explanations, how can we be sure that the same disaster won't happen again in the coming days? Will anyone assume technical and political responsibility for what happened? Will businesses and citizens be compensated for any losses they may have suffered?
The only positive note from this massive blackout has been the civic behavior of the vast majority of the population, who have faced the situation with common sense and resilience, without major mood swings or out-of-control behavior. Neither the lack of public transportation nor the lack of internet or telephone service have caused chaos. There have been many disrupted situations, but no major problems have been experienced. Essential public services, starting with hospitals and medical centers, and continuing with schools, have continued to operate, focused on responding to the most urgent cases. Once again, public servants responded professionally. The various private sectors have also done the necessary work. Roads have undoubtedly been affected: they have been the most visible element of the disruptive situation we have had to face. In any case, the calls for calm have worked. Social life has continued at a slow pace but with common sense.
This sudden and widespread power outage brings us face to face with the technological dependence that shapes our lives. Beyond the essential technical and political response, we are facing a new warning about the danger of our way of life collapsing, just as it happened with the pandemic.
